For the Sake of Life
by Stratusfied247
Summary: [ON HIATUS] Andy Trudeau returns, sent by Grams, with a warning. His mission is to make sure that Prue stays alive and the Power of Three continues. However, his actions will have consequences on all of the sisters. Also includes PhoebeCole and PiperLeo
1. Default Chapter

**_All characters are property of Spelling Entertainment and whomever else owns the characters in Charmed._**

**_This takes place before the sisters found out that Cole was Balthazar. _**

* * *

Prue Halliwell tossed in her sleep, finding no comfort among the cushy mattress of her bed or the comforters and quilts that covered it. The San Francisco night was burning, and even though most of the house was sweltering, even with the air on full blast, Prue was still cold. She twisted and turned in the depths of the bed, her body chilled, yet sweating.

In her dreams, things moved quickly, rushing past her on all sides in hazes of black, white and grey. She turned abruptly as movement ceased. She found herself downstairs in the Halliwell manor, just beyond the foyer. She watched in horror as death loomed in the air. She knew it was the past, had been in the scene before. While last time, she could only see the events that had unfolded before her, in REM state, she could almost see the black hooded figure of death looming overhead, hovering, waiting to snatch away the soul of a good man.

Somewhere deep in her consciousness, she knew something was wrong. This wasn't her power. She didn't have premonitions, or flashes of the past. That was her sister's department. Something nagged at her, telling her that she shouldn't be seeing any of it, that there was someone, somewhere putting these things into her mind and for a reason. Before she could concentrate on what that reason could be, however, the scenes changed.

Piper's wedding. The one that didn't happen. She saw herself on the floor as her astral projection took off on a motorcycle behind a man. Piper screamed at her, but Prue didn't listen. Phoebe went to her on the floor. Piper ran off, declaring the wedding over, indefinitely. In the corner, a figure stood, wavering, just barely in view. He flickered out as Prue saw the black and white forms of her mother and grandmother, then reappeared behind Grams. It was the same man whose death she had just watched.

Life streamed past again, like a DVD on fast-forward, then sped up until it was all a blur again. Prue looked up and there was nothing above her. Everything but herself and the blurs were stark white. She looked down, and though she stood on something solid, there seemed to be no floor, no lines to distinguish where the ground ended and the walls began.

On the left, the scenes continued to speed by in rapid motion. On the left, the wall stopped. Instead of being inside the picture, she watched it playout on a sort of wide screen with no top or bottom. It just hovered in the air. She saw herself flying across the manor, smashing through the large bay window. A few minutes later, she saw Piper landing beside her. Again, he was standing just off the side of the scene, watching, head shaking.

The right sped up again in a blur. The left stopped.

Prue turned to see her sisters at a funeral. Her funeral. Her father was there, standing off to the side. Neither Piper nor Phoebe looked at him. She saw Cole flicker from the man she knew into Balthazar, then back again. Once more, the apparition hung near. At Balthazar's form, he shook his head. He said nothing, but moved his hand in front of him. Cole/Balthazar disappeared. He hadn't been touching either of the remaining Halliwell women. They hadn't been touching him. He hadn't really been there, at least not in physical form.

The world stopped and Prue screamed as the halt screeched in her head.

She was in a room, and for the first time, there was real color, but only one. Bright red, crimson, scarlet dotted the grey tinted clothes of Piper and Phoebe Halliwell as they stood before a throng of demons and minions. Without the Power of Three, they weren't strong enough to fight them off. Prue could only watch in horror as her sisters were cut down. The sky dimmed as the last bit of Halliwell blood spilled onto the ground, then went completely black. The sound of laughter spurted forth just before the essence of the Source seeped up from the ground and came together in a man's shape. Again, a shimmering apparition hovered in the scene, this time over the lifeless forms of Piper and Phoebe.

Everything vanished. Prue was alone in a room that had no walls, ceiling or floor. She stood straight, seemingly floating in an irridescent space. She dropped to her knees and though her body stopped in a kneeling position, she felt nothing beneath her.

"What do you want from me!"

Prue sat up in the bed, her chest aching from her forced intakes of breaths. Sweat beaded her skin, gelling in place. Suddenly, she was no longer cold, but so hot that she threw the covers from the bed and jumped up. Her gown was short, hanging just past the middle of her thighs. She walked to the window and looked out, but there was nothing to see but the moon and the silence of her neighborhood at night.

No one came rushing in, which Prue took to mean that she hadn't screamed her demand in wakefulness. However, the shrill of her voice still rang in her head, bouncing off the walls of her skull. Her hand to her head, she padded barefoot out of the bedroom and down the hall, stopping at the bathroom door. She walked in and hopped a few steps at the cold of the tile floor before getting used to the chill.

Looking down at the faucet as she turned on the cold water, Prue reached up blindly and opened the medicine cabinet. She turned her head up to find a bottle of aspirin, then as she closed the door and stared into the mirror, dropped the bottle into the sink. She closed her eyes, shook her head, then looked up again. He was still there, though unlike her dream, he wasn't an apparition. He was full, slender, looking as though he had never died.

"It's not their time yet, Prue."

She jumped and whirled around. There was no one there. A few years earlier, she would have just assumed it was the remnant of a dream, her mind pulling out what was left of a memory of someone she had grown up with, loved, and watched pass before her eyes. Since learning of her destiny as a Charmed One, however, she had more belief that he was really there, in some fashion or another.

Prue walked forward and as she passed through the spot where he had stood, a chill moved through her body, then was quickly pushed aside by a warmth of comfort and familiarity. She closed her eyes and turned, hugging herself tightly. She walked back to the sink and picked up the dropped bottle of pills. Her headache grew and she fumbled with the childproof cap until it popped open. She looked up again, and when the bottle slipped from her hands, half of the small white tablets fell down the drain with the rushing water.

"It's not your time yet, either, Prue."

Instead of turning this time, she stared at the mirror. She watched him smile, wink his right eye. His hand came out towards her, and all she felt was the same warmth as before touch her shoulder. No touch of skin to skin or brush of cloth from the hanging sleeve of his grey jacket. Not even really warm air as much as a sensation that if he really had touched her, she would feel calm, at peace.

Slowly, he faded from her view. His eyes were the last to go and they sparkled as they passed into nothingness, a twinkle that she remembered well, when he was up to something or just wanted her to be suspicious. Prue reached out slowly. Her fingertips touched the mirror, then she pressed her palm against the cold glass. She took in a deep breath, let it fall shakily from her lips, then whispered, "Andy."


	2. Chapter 2

"I'm not crazy."

"Nobody said you were, hon."

"Then why are you looking at me like that?"

Piper sighed and glanced at Phoebe. Both young ladies had listened to their sister's tale. While Piper had instantly gone to concerned, more for Prue's mental state than any actual danger, Phoebe had gone somewhat sullen. Her sisters didn't usually encroach on her passive power, and though she had longed for something more active, she still held onto her ability dearly.

"Prue, I'm just worried about you," Piper said, resting her hand gently on top of Prue's. "It's been less than a year, and we know how hard Andy's death has been on you."

"I'm not seeing things!" She jerked her hand back and stood. She began to pace back and forth around the small white table. "I mean, I am seeing things, but it's not because I'm crazy." Prue continued to pace, then stopped in front of the window. "Right here. I went through this window. Then you, Piper."

"Where was I?" Phoebe asked, her first words since asking if her sister were sure that it had been some kind of precognitive vision and not just a bad dream.

"How am I supposed to know? He didn't tell me." She sighed and her shoulders slumped. "All I know is that Cole is Balthazar, and because of him, I ended up dead, and then all Hell broke loose, literally, and you two were dead, too."

"What about Leo?" Piper asked. "You didn't see him anywhere except the wedding, but there had to be a reason for that. Maybe he's supposed to find out something from the elders."

"This I highly doubt." Prue rolled her eyes. "You know, for them to be all wise and knowing, they never seem to know exactly what's going on."

"Uh... I don't think you should talk about them like that."

"I don't care!" Prue looked up and screamed in frustration. The most retched parts of life were always thrown at them, the Charmed Ones, born to save the world from evil, and the job handed them was thankless. The Elders rarely gave anything helpful other than Leo, and she'd already seen how helpful he'd been. When she died, he wasn't there to save her. And he hadn't had the decency to even say who he really was in time to save Andy. He may have been a literal Godsend for Piper and her lovelife, but for Prue, she seemed to have constantly been let down.

"I still think it was just a bad dream," Phoebe said slowly. "I mean, you really don't get premonitions. And that's what that was. Okay, so it was a little clearer, and you had a guide, which I don't even get, and how totally screwed up is that? My power and I don't even get..."

"Phoebe!" Piper tilted her head to the side and widened her eyes.

"Oh, yeah.. Point. The point here is... I think it was a bad dream. You're just feeling down about Andy. I mean, you're lonely. Piper's got Leo. I've got Cole, who I SO do not believe is Balthazar, by the way, and you're missing Andy. It's totally understandable."

"I am not lonely. I am not missing Andy." She stopped, then shook her head. "Okay, so maybe I am missing Andy. But my Andy dreams have nothing to do with death and Armaggedon. They have to do with... with..." She blushed, then shook her head again. "Nevermind. They just aren't like that, okay? So just... stop with the whole it was a dream, okay?"

Piper looked to Phoebe for some kind of insight, but finding none, stood up and walked up behind Prue. She put a hand on her sister's shoulder and the older Halliwell just sighed. "I saw you die," Prue said softly. "I saw us all die, and Andy showed it to me. There had to be a reason. Everything has to be connected somehow."

"This isn't the first time we've been in danger since Andy died. The Elders..."

"Personal gain!" Phoebe stood up, interrupting Piper. "If it really was a vision, that's why Andy brought it and it wasn't just given to me."

Both women turned to Phoebe with incredulous looks. "Come again?" Piper said, still somewhat flustered by being cut off, but deciding to let it pass for the moment.

"Okay, so you know there's that rule about personal gain, right? So, they wouldnt' help us use our powers to help ourselves. So, I couldn't exactly see us all dying 'cause that would be personal gain."

"But you saw it in the future. Remember?"

"But that wasn't just me, Piper. That was that guy with his stupid poopy dog. And all the other witches that were screwed over in the process. This, though... this is just us."

"So, you're saying that someone else sent Andy, and to Prue. Because..."

"Who else would he go to?"

"Ya know, as much as this rarely happens, you do have a point."

"Oh, thanks." Phoebe rolled her eyes and groaned. "Prue's usually the one that says stuff like that."

"Well, she's not exactly up to it right now."

"I know, but it just sounds weird coming from you. You're the nice one."

The light-hearted banter ceased as Prue said, "We have to get in touch with Andy." She turned from the window, trying to shake the chill that came from standing in the spot that would later cause her demise, then looked at her sisters, her dark eyes cold. "I think Grams sent him."

"Why Grams?" Piper asked.

"When he showed me the wedding... there was no point in showing me that. We're passed it, ya know? But he was there, standing between Mom and Grams, but he was closer to Grams. She sent him to warn us, because as much as this is personal gain in a way, it's not all about us."

Prue folded her arms in a light hug around her mid-drift, shivering for a moment as the skin of her forearm touched the small spanse of bare flesh between the hem of her top and waist of her slacks. She took a step back, separating herself from Piper, then turning eyes on both of her sisters.

"If we die, the world as we know it ends. Everything will go black and the Source will take over. Cole may be Balthazar, but... I don't know. There's something else there. I mean, he wasn't at the funeral, but why show him there? And when he just had Cole's face, why did he look sad? There are questions that we need answered and only Andy can do that."

Piper and Phoebe looked at Prue, watching her expression grow more and more sorrowful by the second, as if she was almost sure that to not try and contact Andy would mean resigning herself to her own death, to all of their deaths. Piper sighed and let her shoulders slump. "I'll call P-3 and tell them I'll be in later."

"I can skip out of class," Phoebe said. "Not that I'm complaining, 'cause I don't have any tests and that guy is really boring. I just always thought ditching was supposed to be a fun affair."

"I'll call Buckland's," Prue said, turning and starting to walk away. "They'll just have to get by without me. I'll be upstairs at the book. There's gotta be something in there that can help us figure this all out. Oh, and Piper, don't call Leo just yet. We'll let him know what's going on when we know."

Prue continued up to the attic, unsure of everything. She knew there had to be some consequence for what they were doing, even if they had turned a case of personal gain into a higher cause. However, any punishment they could be given would be better than the death of the Charmed Ones. As Prue reached the attic, her thoughts still dour, a familiar, soft voice filled her head. "Do you really think they'd have let me do it if it wasn't meant to be?"

Prue stood with her hand on the attic door and let out a shaky sigh. "Grams... to sanity's rescue again." Shaking her head, Prue went inside, leaving the door open behind her. She went straight for the book and started flipping through the pages, confidant that if the page didn't come swiftly to her hands, it would at least do it for either Prue or Piper. They were the Charmed Ones after all. Together, they could find whatever they needed. She just hoped that they could also defeat anything standing together, as well.


	3. Chapter 3

The Book of Shadows flipped open to a blank page beneath Prue's fingers. She looked down, her brow furrowed, and growled. A blank page did'nt help. She rifled through the pages, turning them back until she found a spell that the sisters had used previously to call up the spirits of their past. Again, just as Phoebe and Piper walked into the attic, the book turned itself to the blank page. This time, however, there was a title. "Communicating with the Dead (non-relatives)."

Prue looked upward and sighed. "I get the point, Grams." She groaned, then looked down at the page. She felt her sisters come to stand on either side of her, and said, "I think we're supposed to make up one of our own."

"Well, if that's just not the end all be all of uselessness." Phoebe rolled her eyes as she thumbed through a couple of pages. "I think we should take this book back. It's defective. Do we still have the receipt?"

"I think Melinda threw it away after she got it," Piper said to her with a smirk. "We're stuck with it."

"And I guess we're supposed to write our little spell in here when we're done, huh?"

"That's usually how it goes. Remember, I'm rejectin' your deflection? I think that's still in there somewhere."

Phoebe growled low in her throat. "Don't remind me. I still can't believe how bad that turned out."

"Hey! It worked. Even if you walked around talking in country-toned rhyme for a couple of weeks after."

"That was so annoying!"

As Phoebe and Piper went back and forth, Prue had already begun scribbling on a small notepad beside the Book of Shadows. She wrote and scratched out a number of lines before finally finding something that felt right. She looked up and said, "Okay, trip down memory lane... later. I've got the spell."

"Go, Super Witch." Phoebe grinned. Prue gave her a somewhat withering glance and she shrugged. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

Prue sighed and began to gather candles and crystals. As she laid them out in order, Piper followed her with a gas lighter, sparking the wicks of each candle. With everything lit, the three took seats around the glowing circle of white light. They concentrated, and as they settled into a serene state, all three could feel the power starting to rise from them and gather around the circle, waiting to be directed.

Prue took in a deep breath and turned her eyes down to her spell. She knew she had to hurry if she wanted to get it done before Leo showed back up with a very unclear message from the Elders that just told them that there was something wrong. Yet, staring down at the words, she almost thought that she wouldn't be able to say them. As many times as she'd wished that she could have one more time to talk to Andy, she didn't know if she would be able to look at his eyes, see him standing in front of her, nearly transparent, and untouchable.

"Prue..." She looked to Piper. "If you want this done before Leo comes..."

"I know. I know." She took in a deep breath and slowly started the spell.

"_A message to pass through death and time_

_A warning from across the thin white line_

_A message sought so it we may heed_

_Bring forth our guardian for us to see."_

Air began to swirl through the attic, thick with power. As the wind picked up, the trio moved back from the circle, watching as the candle flames flickered, the crystals started to glow. Their hair whipped into their faces and they could feel the formation of something solid, yet still somewhat unsure. They could sense a presence in the room and it was familiar to them all.

"_A message sought so it we may heed_

_Bring forth our guardian for us to see!"_

At Prue's prompting, Phoebe and Piper began to chant the last two lines until their voices were harmonized and just barely audible over the howling winds. A surge of power went through the room and they were shoved backwards. The trio fell into a heap, but quickly regained their footing and stood firm, clasping each other's hands. Something was trying to stop the spell from working, trying to interfere.

Still holding tightly to her sisters' hands, Prue stepped forward. The words that came from her mouth were not her own, and were not in her voice. The replies shooting back at her fell out of the air, eminating from the swirling cloud that tried to form.

"Even in this, we have rules. You can not interfere."

"And neither can you, Witch!"

"I have done nothing. Stand down!"

"What can a long dead witch do to hurt me?" There was the sound of laughter, amusement at a game thought to be won.

"Don't count your chickens, honey." Prue's hands released from her sisters and her arms shot forward. A spark jumped from her fingertips, and as it connected with the swirl, a howl echoed that, from the inside, shook the foundations of the manor, though was invisible to the outside world. Prue stood up straight as the wind began to die down and the formation started again. She put her hands to her hair, then ran them lightly down the front of her shirt. "Messy business, girl. Continue." Though still holding consciousness, Prue slumped and her sisters rushed forward. They helped her stand slowly and she shook her head. "What was that?"

"That, Prue, was the Source. Bothersome, don't ya think?"

The Halliwell Witches turned slowly to the voice. They blinked, almost in synchronicity, then shook their heads. Piper took a step forward, then quickly took a step back. She blinked again, then looked at Phoebe. The youngest Charmed One merely shrugged and shook her head, staring at the man before them.

Former Detective Andy Trudeau stood before them, adjusting the brown tie that hung around his neck. The right corner of his mouth was turned up in a smirk as he pulled the knot tight, then rolled his eyes as he stuck his index finger in between tie and shirt and pulled. "I never did like these things. You know, that grandmother of yours is one pushy broad."

"I heard that," a voice said, floating through the room.

Andy merely rolled his eyes. "My gig, remember?" He shook his head and sighed. "I'd almost forgotten how she could get. I think she forgot that I grew up." He looked out from the circle to the staring sisters and twisted his face in a mix of frustration and confusion. "I have never known any of you to be that quiet, especially you, Phoebe."

"Hey!" Phoebe stood up straight. "I am not a loud mouth."

"Didn't say you were. Just that you liked to talk." He smirked, then turned his head. "Piper. How's married life treating you. Now that you finally made it."

"It's... fine..." She hesitated, still somewhat in shock. She had talked to dead people before, one of which included her own mother, but she had believed all along when the others had shown up. Until she actually felt the presence forming, she had still been convinced that Prue had been conjuring ideas and dreams in her sorrow.

"Good. Ya know, it's just too bad Leo wasn't around when I died, huh? But then, I wouldn't be here now so maybe it's good that he didn't." He shrugged, then finally turned to look at Prue. She was still staring at him with wide eyes. She had stood up straight, pulling apart from her sisters and taken a step forward, but only the one. "Hello, Prue."

She blinked. "Andy." She didn't know what to say. All of the things she wanted to tell him or ask him were jumbled in her head, spinning around faster than the fragments of his form had earlier. When she finally spoke again, she said the first thing to fall out of her mouth. "You're whole."

"Well, I miss you, too," he said with a chuckle.

"No. I mean, I miss you, but..." She walked forward again and instinctively reached out. Her fingers touched the barrier made by the crystals and candles and a slight spark zapped her fingertips. She pulled her hand back. "You're whole. I mean... the others were transparent."

"Oh, that." He shrugged. "I have no idea. I just came up this way." He looked down around him, then back up and said, "If you'd move a crystal or two, maybe a candle, I could get out."

Phoebe was the first to move and quickly made a small opening, clutching the crystals in her hands. She stepped back, then the three watched as Andy made his way out of the circle, tugging at his tie again. "A little less formal next time, huh, Prue? Then I won't have the tie."

"I always liked the tie," she said softly, stepping towards him.

"You would."

Prue reached out to touch him, but for as solid as he looked, her hand still fell through. His body rippled as her hand and wrist passed through him, then straightened back out. Andy reached out towards her and his hand passed through her arm. Prue shivered and let out a large sigh, her body trembling with the exhalation.

Piper cleared her throat, and both the witch and the ghost turned towards her. "I hate to break up this happy reunion, but... You said that was the Source?"

"Yup."

"The Source of what?"

"All evil... what else?"

"Oh, right." She rolled her eyes. "The Source of all evil. What else could it possibly be."

"Sarcasm always was your strong suit."

"Uh huh. Why is the Source trying to stop you from coming to see us?"

"Because if I tell you what you need to know, then he doesn't get to come out and play."

"Again with the condescending tone. It's very unbecoming, Andy."

"Excuse me," Phoebe interjected, stepping forward. "I have always loved the witty banter. Missed it, too. Darryl just isn't up to it the way you were. And he's just great, though we're slowly driving him insane, by the way. But what's this about Cole being Balthazar? I'd hate to think that my boyfriend is a demon sent to murder us. 'Cause that would just completely suck."

"Get used to it, Phoebs," Andy told her with a shrug. "It's the truth."

"Yeah, but there's a catch, right? I mean, he's had more than one chance to get rid of us and he hasn't done it, yet. So, there's a catch, right?"

"He's half-human."

"And again, the catch would be?"

"I'm getting to that. Damn, but you're impatient."

"I'm the baby of the family. It comes with the territory."

"Uh huh." He shook his head and tugged on the tie again. Andy's head turned to Prue, who still stood staring at him. "So quiet. You called me, now you have nothing to say?"

"I tried to save you. I told you to stay away."

"And did you really think I'd be able to do that?"

"I thought you'd listen for once."

"You know me better than that, Prue."

"Yeah... I guess, I do."

They stood silently, again, staring at one another. Prue started to reach out again, but restrained herself, forcing her arm at her side. Phoebe and Piper looked between the two, waiting for something to be said, then finally looked at each other. They mentally played rock/paper/scissors, and somehow, Piper knew she had won. With a sigh, she stepped forward, putting herself between Andy and Prue. Her shoulder touched him and she trembled slightly at the warmth that passed through her, then stepped to the side.

"Okay, so you two obviously have a lot to talk about. Great. Wonderful. But there are things we need to know. First... how long are you here?"

Andy blinked, something Piper wasn't altogether sure that the dead needed to do, then looked at Piper. "Because of the way the spell was worded, I'm here until you don't need me anymore."

"And that means?"

"I'm here until the end. Prue said guardian, which means I'm not allowed to leave until my task is done. If she'd have said messanger, then I'd be out of here once I said my piece."

"So, we've basically got you for a while."

"Pretty much."

"Okay, so that means you and Prue can talk later. Right now, it's time to get down to business. What's this thing about death and destruction?"

"And..." Phoebe tilted her head in encouragement as Piper whipped her neck to look at her.

Piper sighed. "And, what's with this whole Cole as Balthazar thing. Happy?" Phoebe nodded and Piper rolled her eyes. "Good. Now, come on, Andy. Get to explaining. You were never one to beat around the bush so don't start now."

Finally coming out of her semi-trance, Prue shook herself, then nodded. "Piper's right. We have things to do, business to discuss, and I get the feeling that if we don't at least get started, Grams is gonna start screaming in my head. So, we talk later and for now... Andy, tell us just what's going on, because as much as we all miss you, I don't think any of us are ready to die."


	4. Chapter 4

"So, that was Leo as white lighter, huh? Shimmery lights and Elder talk?"

"Yeah." Prue turned her head to the side. She didn't look directly at Andy, but she saw him in her peripheral. She kept waiting for him to fade away, like he'd done the night before, but he stayed solid, as though she could actually touch him, yet she knew her hand would only fall through his body.

"He didn't seem too happy to see me."

"That's because he knew it meant bad news. Leo doesn't really care for bad news. None of us do."

"He was, dare I say, standoff-ish."

"He doesn't know you like I know you. Knew you."

"Know me."

Prue turned to face him head on, and his eyes were still bright, twinkling with knowledge of things that Prue wasn't sure she really wanted to know. He'd been watching her all that time, staring down from whatever patch of clouds guardians stood watch on, and he had seen her pain and guilt. If she weren't a witch, if she and her sisters weren't the ever powerful Charmed Ones, he'd have still been alive. Without a secret to keep, she and Andy could have found their way back to each other. As it were, it would only come to be in her death, and he was there to stop it.

"_The long and the short of it is, Cole was sent by the Source to kill the Charmed Ones. He's had the chance, but he either failed or just didn't take it. Now, it's a matter of him not taking it."_

"_He wasn't at my..." Prue stopped and shook her head. "He was there, but he wasn't. And he faded, in the vision I saw. He faded."_

_Phoebe shook her head and sighed. "First Cole's a demon, then Prue's getting visions. Do I ever get a break?"_

"_Phoebe, please." Piper sighed and looked at Andy. "Go on."_

"_Nice to know you three haven't changed a bit." He chuckled softly, still able to find even the smallest bit of humor to somewhat ease the tension of the news that he bore. "He's not going to do it, and he'll be destroyed. Leo won't be there to save Prue, and in the guilt of his failure, he returns back to mope with the Elders. The two of you are left alone, and in your own grief, you're vulnerable. No more Charmed Ones equals Hell on Earth... literally."_

_A pregnant pause filled the air as each of the witches took in a deep breath. That was definitely a story in a nutshell. However, there were so many holes in it that even if they asked questions for the next ten years, it wouldn't all be filled in. Yet, they had to try to at least fill a few._

"_This doesn't tell us how I... I mean... can you tell us how I..." Prue sighed. Though she had said it earlier, she couldn't look at Andy and admit that she was going to die. "Let me rephrase." She thought for a few minutes, then said, "Okay, in the vision... dream... whatever... I saw Piper and me getting knocked out. I went through the window. Where was Phoebe and where was Leo?"_

"_First... Phoebe was with Cole, down in the underworld. Leo was up talking to the Elders."_

"_Wait a minute! Why was I down there?"_

"_You were sent to find a demon to reverse time."_

"_Uh... what? Excuse me?"_

_He rolled his eyes. "You just can't let me make a long story short, huh? Here goes." He began to walk slowly back and forth, like a teacher in front of his class. "You're going to find out about Cole. You're also going to claim to vanquish him, but you won't, and there's this long series of events..."_

"_I vanquish Cole!"_

"_No! Can I continue? Thank you. Jeez... it'd be nice if the interrupting bit had changed." He shook his head, then continued. "To cut it short, Cole decides to try and be good. He's gonna try and help. But the day comes when your secret is found out. The Elders send you to find Tempus to set time back. You end up making a deal with the Source..." He held up his hand. "Don't say it. You don't need to know because if all goes well, none of this is gonna happen. Now, you make the deal, but you and Cole have to stay. He sends a demon that you got past the first time, but on the repeat, you won't do it. He kills Prue and thinks Piper's dead. The Source kills Balthazar for his betrayal, then bye bye world as we know it."_

"_So..." Piper nodded slowly as she took it all in and thought. "We have to not make it to that day. Great. What do we do?"_

"_You have to vanquish Cole."_

"_Uh uh." Phoebe shook her head. "You said he was half human, so that means we'd be killing someone. Next."_

"_You have to vanquish him. Once he's gone, the Source is still going to send Shax. You have to come up with a spell to vanquish him, then that's it."_

"_Oh great," Piper said sarcastically, "that's so easy."_

"_Isn't it, though? I'm always a good help."_

_A tinkle of bells, then a voice came from behind Andy. "I doubt I'd call this a help." Leo came walking forward, moving carefully around Andy, to stand beside Piper. "This is what the Elders called me about. Why is there a ghost here? A ghost with substantial form."_

"_Uh, hi, Leo." Piper's eyes widened. "Leo, say hi to Andy."_

"_Hey there, Leo."_

"_Hi." He turend back to Piper. "What's going on? The Elders said something was going to happen that would change things, then told me to come back."_

"_Uh, yeah, that..." Piper rolled her eyes upward, then said, "Grams sent him to help us keep Prue from dying. Good thing, right?"_

"_Bad thing. Piper, you know the rules about personal gain."_

"_It's not personal gain, Leo. If she dies, we're vulnerable. If we die, everyone dies. That's not personal gain. It's helping a whole lot of innocents at once."_

"_Now, you're just playing semantics."_

"_Leo..."_

"_We're not supposed to tell the future."_

"_You mean you know the future?"_

"_Time is inconsequential up there. I told you that before, didn't I?"_

"_Uh, no, you didn't."_

"_Uh, guys?" They turned Phoebe. "I think we're alone."_

_In the middle of the argument, one in which a marriage counselor would say was good for the relationship in getting out feelings, Prue and Andy had disappeared. They hadn't heard anything since the beginning of Leo's speech on personal gain. Phoebe looked towards the stairs and sighed. "I think we should just, uh... keep convincing Leo this isn't personal gain."_

"Prue?"

She looked up as Andy called her name, shaking the memory of only minutes before from her mind. He stood across the room, his hands in his pockets, much the way he'd always stood when staring at her, waiting for her to tell him anything, preferably the truth.

"Prue, what is it?" He walked forward, taking his hands from his pockets. His arms swung lazily at his sides as he strolled across the floor.

Prue took a step back. "Everything I did was to keep you safe."

"Huh?"

"I loved you," she said softly after swallowing the lump starting to grow in her throat. "I've loved you for so long. And I didn't want you hurt. That's why I didn't tell you. That's why..." She turned her head away, knowing that he couldn't force her to look at him. He was whole, but he wasn't solid. He couldn't pull her face back to him. "I told you not to come here that day. I told you it wouldn't be safe. Phoebe saw..."

"You knew I couldn't listen to that. Did you really think I'd just leave you in that kind of danger? That I'd just... that I wouldn't try to help."

"You were an innocent, and I couldn't keep you safe."

He shook his head, and snorted. "I haven't been innocent in years."

Prue forced her face towards him and blinked away tears. "In the terms that counted, you were an innocent and I failed."

"You didn't fail, Prue. I was supposed to die. If I weren't, then something would have stopped me from coming here."

"You don't know that."

"You have no idea what I know."

"I..." She wiped at tears on her cheeks. "I don't think I want to know."

"Trust me, Prue. You don't."

His voice was soft, like Prue remembered it to be every time they talked, or at least the times that didn't turn into an argument. It was a reminder of the happier times, the days that had brought about her largest wishes that she weren't a witch and she could just have a normal life.

Prue turned her head away again as tears poured from her eyes. She walked slowly across the bedroom to stand in the window. A woman in a flower print sundress walked her black Labrador down the street, holding firmly to the leash. Three cars passed the house, two going east, the other west. Across the street, an elderly woman looked out her window briefly with suspicion, then closed the curtains.

Andy walked up behind her and she could feel him as though he were real, substantial, able to be held and lightly touched. He peered around her and stared out the window. "They can't see me, ya know. There's something about this whole thing where they don't even wanna look this way." When Prue didn't acknowledge him with a word or a movement, he sighed. "Prue, talk to me. Please."

Though the tears had stopped falling, they still streaked her cheeks. She turned slowly to him and blinked. He was so close, but in the same instance light years away. She rose one hand and reached out. She stopped, hovering just above his cheek. Her voice came strained as she whispered, "I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye."

Andy blinked once, lazily, then closed his eyes. The last thing he remembered before being sent flying across the room to his death was seeing Prue lying unconscious on the floor. He hadn't even had to think as he rushed inside, all thoughts of her warnings and Phoebe's premonitions gone from his mind. She was lying so still, and if she had died, he only wanted to be there with her. If he died in the process, he wouldn't have cared.

"Neither did I," he said softly.

His hand rose and hung precariously in the air, mirroring her movement at her cheek. Prue's hand fell, and so did his. He took a step back from her and she raised her hand again. This time, he rose the hand directly across from hers and hovered just out of reach. He retook his step and his hand melded into hers, crossing through the digits and passing the wrist. Prue almost thought she could feel his fingers tickling along the small hairs on her forearm.

Andy retook the step he'd previously given up, then took another. He leaned into Prue and she rose her other hand, momentarily forgetting that it would do nothing to fend him off. She fell forward, her body slicing through his. She went down to her knees on the floor and took in shallow breaths. Andy moved around her, and she could feel him passing through her bent legs and feet.

He knelt down in front of her, his face just inches away. "You fall through me and I feel it like we were melting. When I go through you..."

"It's warm," she said, finally able to control her breathing enough to speak. "And familiar. And some part of my mind says it has to be real and I can feel... I can feel your fingers... touching me."

"Then... can you feel this?"

Before Prue could say anything or move, Andy leaned forward and set his lips to hers. He gauged the distance to be sure as not to go completely through her face. The meat of his lips passed just far enough that the line of their mouths touched. The kiss was chaste by most standards, but at the same time was the most intimate thing that the two of them could have ever shared.

With rain falling anew from her eyes, Prue took one crawl backwards, separating herself from Andy. Steadying her body on one arm, she rose the other and touched her lips with the tips of her fingers. Salty tears touched the ends of her fingers and traced the outline of her hands, seeping into the corners of her mouth.

She lowered her hand back to the floor and let her head fall forward. Her hair fell like a curtain into her face. She watched her tears fall, each one making a new dot on the carpet until they bled together into one moist mass. She turned her head back up and Andy was still kneeling before her. His eyes seemed so pained, there was so much longing in him... she wondered if he would have cried if his body were real. Prue looked up at Andy through the curtain of her hair. Her mouth opened once, then closed. She swallowed hard, then tried again. Still nothing. She lowered her head again, took in a deep breath and let it fall shakily from her lips. Finally, she looked back up at him, and on the third try, her voice, though shaky and pained, passed her lips.

"Yes," she whispered to him, "I can."


	5. Chapter 5

Phoebe Halliwell burst into the office of ADA Cole Turner, slamming the door behind her. She held up one hand as he looked at her with surprise and shook her head. "Don't, Cole. Don't say a word." She stepped forward slowly. She watched as Cole stood up and couldn't believe he was a demon. They were supposed to be ugly, or at least creepy in whatever beautiful skin they wore. Cole was neither ugly nor creepy. He was just... Cole.

"Phoebe..."

"Sh." She stood in front of his desk and held out her hand. Never before had she wished so badly for a premonition. Before, she knew now that The Powers That Be would have never given her a glimpse into what Cole truly was. They'd had hundreds of opportunities to show her the truth. Their bodies had touched so often and for so long. But, she didnt' know then. She knew now, however, and all it should take was one little touch.

Cole reached out for her and Phoebe gripped his arm tightly. She waited for three seconds and nothing came. She stared into his eyes and they were as black as his name, but still there was nothing there but the man she loved. Her body relaxed as her mind wrapped around the idea that Andy had just been wrong, Grams had been wrong. Then, her head screamed and her body jerked.

_They stood against a wall, their bodies flat against the stone. Heat rose up from the center. Phoebe knew this was a bad idea, but she had to save her sisters. She had to fix everything. It was her own fault anyway. If she'd have just vanquished Cole the first time, like she was supposed to, Shax wouldn't have come._

_FLASH_

_Cole's body shimmered. The beauty of his soft skin faded into a frightening collage of red and black. His teeth sharpened and yellowed. The hair that Phoebe had run her fingers through so many times was gone, leaving behind a tar-colored bald head._

_FLASH_

_There he stood... or there IT stood. The Source of all Evil. Nothing but darkness showed beneath its cloak. Heat came from his voice. Lies... All of it were lies..._

Phoebe jumped back and stared at Cole. Her eyes filled with tears as, slowly, her arm lowered to her side. She shook her head and muttered, "No." She took a few blind steps back. The back of her knee hit a chair and she fell into the deep leather. She jumped back up. "Cole..."

"Phoebe, what's going on?"

"You..." She shook her head and continued to back up. She stopped moving when her back hit the door. "You've come to kill us."

"Phoebe..."

"You're... you're Balthazar."

Cole rushed around the desk with wide eyes. "Phoebe, I can explain. I..."

"Don't. You... All this time..." She shook her head and squeezed her eyes tightly. Tears fell from her eyelashes and splashed on her cheeks. "All this time..." She rose her head and peered at him through blurred vision. "You made me think you loved me."

"Phoebe, I do love you."

"Don't lie to me! You just wanted to get close to me so you could kill us and steal the book. I know it all, Cole. I know that every time we fought Balthazar, every time one of us almost died, it was you. And then... you came to me... like you cared."

Phoebe reached into the pocket of her jeans and fingered the bottle that pressed into her hip. She watched Cole walking closer to her and carefully pulled the small vial free. "Stay away from me, Cole." She held up the bottle. Sunlight streamed through the window and reflected off the glass and clear liquid.

"Phoebe, don't do this." He stopped a few feet away from her, his hands out palm forward. "I love you."

"No, you don't."

"If I didn't love you, Phoebe, you and your sisters would be dead already." Cole took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I've been making excuses as to why you're not dead yet. I've been trying to do whatever I can until I found a way to tell you the truth. Phoebe..."

"You're a demon."

"Half demon."

"You've killed."

"But, I haven't killed you. I haven't killed your sisters. I love you, Phoebe."

Her arm started to lower. She wanted to believe what he said. She loved him, deeply and truly. Her heart beat a little quicker whenever he were near. She saw things in shop windows that she just had to buy because they reminded her of him. She wanted to be able to wrap herself in his warmth and get lost in his love.

Cole took a step forward and her arm shot up again. She knew what she had to do. Andy had already told her that Cole had to be vanquished. She already had the potion. The rest would have been so easy. She had only to throw the potion and have it catch some part of his body or clothing. If she moved just fast enough, he'd never be able to shimmer away before it hit him. It was so easy.

Yet, she couldn't bring herself to drop the vial. Her hand shook and she gripped the glass tighter. "Stay away from me, Cole," she said, holding her voice as firmly as possible. "Stay away from us or, God help me..." She shook her head. "God help me."

Phoebe turned and bolted from the office, ignoring the looks of workers as they wondered what had sent the attorney's girlfriend out in such a rush. Phoebe kept her head down, wondering what she would say, what she would do. Her sisters didnt' know she had gone to Cole. She had slipped out while Piper argued with Leo, and she had no idea what was going on upstairs between Prue and her ghostly love. They were wrapped up in themselves then, but they would know when she walked through the door. She had to say something. She had to do something.

She thought she would give one of them the potion. Maybe Prue. She had never liked Cole anyway, and she was the one that would die because Phoebe didn't have the courage to kill her boyfriend on her own. It would be easier for Prue to do it, because Phoebe knew that there was no way she could cause the death of Cole... demon or not.


End file.
